It's the Beat of Her Heart Saying 'Let Me Be Your Star'
by Jack E. Peace
Summary: Chloe never expected Aubrey to follow in her father's footsteps and become a lawyer. Then again, she never expected that the first time they'd see each other in four years she'd be sitting in a jail cell.
1. Flashback to a Girl with a Song in Heart

**Disclaimer: **The characters you recognize don't belong to me. There are also going to be frequent references to the musical _Bombshell_, which doesn't actually exist but all the characters, songs and story lines from that musical are from the show _Smash_.

**A/N: **So I'm about as obsessed with Chloe and Aubrey as I am with Jesse and Beca and that's saying something. I love them so much and this story wouldn't leave me alone, so I decided to go ahead and write it. As always, it turned out to be longer than I expected. There's going to be two parts and an epilogue and I'll try not to keep you waiting. The title for this story comes from the song "Let Me Be Your Star," from the show _Smash_, which has a prominent part later on in the story. I confess, I've never seen the show before but I love Katharine McPhee, so I love listening to the music. If there are any fans out there who want to help with any mistakes I might have made in the next section, I'm more than happy for their help! I hope that everyone enjoys this story! Thanks!

**"Flash Back to a Girl With a Song in Heart As She's Waiting to Start the Adventure." **

So here's the story. It's not like she means to get arrested. I mean, honestly, who sets out to get arrested? All she was trying to do was save a few animals and show the city that there were still people out there who cared about the environment and the trees in the park that were going to be bulldozed to make room for a new parking structure. Who does that? Who gets rid of a perfectly good park to make room for more asphalt? The other members of her People for the Protection of the Environment group (yeah, it's not a very catchy title) assured her that they've done this stuff before and the cops can't actually arrest you for tying yourself to a tree trunk. Well, apparently they can. And that's how Chloe Beale finds herself in jail, along with a few angry ex-girlfriends, teens under the influence of alcohol and other substances, two hookers and the one other member of the PPE who didn't run when the cops showed up. Chloe thought that the whole thing was about solidarity for each other and for the trees. Her arresting officers had to forcibly pry her off the tree, which is something she's pretty proud of if she does say so herself. She can't say the same for the rest of the members.

Chloe goes through processing with all the dignity that she can muster (not that there's much dignity to be had when a surly female officer is groping her to make sure that she's not concealing any weapons) and when she's put in the holding cell with the rest of the other women she calls her sister on the singular pay phone. "Oh Chloe." Justine doesn't sound surprised when she accepts the charges from the county jail, as though she'd always expected this moment would come. "What did you do?"

"I was trying to stop people from bulldozing a bunch of trees." Chloe tells her sister. She gets a few amused look from her cell-mates. "They're trying to get rid of Wade Park."

Justine bails her out and Chloe decides that she's going to go talk to Richard, the head of the PPE the following morning to give him a piece of her mind. What type of message does it send when the majority of the group scatters at the first sign of trouble? But before Chloe can tell him off, Richard somehow convinces her not to leave because the group needs her and they're planning another demonstration. This demonstration proves to be a lot more illegal than the first and involves ruining the bulldozers that are being used to level the park. While she's sitting in the back of a police car on her way to jail for the second time, Chloe realizes that she probably should leave the PPE because Richard is pretty much shit when it comes to planning things out. Any idiot would have thought to memorize the security guard's schedule before planning something like this.

This time the construction company decides to press charges on Chloe and the rest of the members of the PPE that were arrested (which include Richard this time, which she finds small satisfaction in) so when Chloe calls Justine yet again, her sister tells her that she can't bail her out without a lawyer involved. Chloe figures this might be a little more serious than she'd been anticipating.

Justine promises to find her a lawyer who specializes in this kind of thing; apparently her husband knows someone who knows someone and she'll do her best to get her baby sister out of jail. Chloe is forced to change out of her clothes into a scratchy uniform provided by the county and is put into population and really the other girls aren't so bad. Chloe's always been glad for the part of her personality that lets her make friends with practically everyone.

The following morning one of the officers lets her know that her lawyer is waiting to talk to her and Chloe heads toward the visiting area with some of the other girls. To say she's shocked to find that Aubrey Posen is her lawyer is putting it lightly. Aubrey doesn't look surprised to see her, so Chloe figures that she knew who's case she was agreeing to take on. It's been four years since she's seen Aubrey but the blonde is every bit as striking and poised as Chloe remembers. Maybe even more so; her pantsuit and carefully manicured nails make her look businesslike and a little frightening.

"Oh my God! Aubrey!" Chloe goes in to hug her old friend but one of the guards clears his throat and so she has to stop short, dropping her arms. "I can't believe it!"

Aubrey gives her a tight smile. "I can't either. Your sister hired my father's firm to represent you and my father let me take your case." Aubrey's tone is professional, not at all like someone connecting with an old friend.

Chloe sits down across from Aubrey and has to fight down the urge to reach for her hands. "So you decided to go into law after all." She nods thoughtfully. "What happened to opening your own dance studio?"

"That was just a pipe dream." Aubrey says dismissively, like she's uttered those words several times before. "I was lucky that my father accepted me into his firm without any experience."

Chloe opens her mouth to argue but decides against it. It's been four years, she should probably keep her opinions to herself for the time being. "Well you look very…professional." She used to love Aubrey's style because it suited her so well. She was always so well put together without being stuffy. Now she just looks like a clone of the countless other suits-and-ties that Chloe has seen.

"Thank you. You look…" Aubrey's professional veneer cracks a little. "I can't believe you're in jail Chloe. Are you okay?"

Chloe shrugs and gives her a smile. "The food is shit but it's all right."

Aubrey scoffs, shaking her head slightly. "The ever-adaptable Chloe Beale everyone." She gives her old friend a little smile. "Well, I have good news. You're going to be able to get out on bail if you accept me as your lawyer and my father's firm will accept personal responsibility for you and ensure that you'll show up to your court dates. Sound good?"

"Yes, please." Chloe nods enthusiastically. "So I guess since you're my lawyer now, we're actually going to be seeing more of each other."

Aubrey's smile grows slightly. "Yes, I guess so." Aubrey looks like there's something more that she wants to say but thinks better of it and just gives Chloe a brisk nod. "I'll go fill out the paper work."

"Thanks." Chloe says to Aubrey's back as she leaves the room and she spends a second sitting at the newly vacated table, trying to process the bizarre turn of events. She never expected to have to spend the night in jail and she definitely never expected that she'd run into Aubrey again under these circumstances. Life can be funny that way.

Aubrey is waiting outside when Chloe is finally sprung from the clink and this time there's no guard standing around to tell Chloe to keep her distance. For a minute Aubrey seems surprised by the hug but she eventually puts her arms around her friend, giving Chloe a squeeze.

Chloe grabs her hand and gives Aubrey a smile. "Okay, we're going for coffee. And I am starving; we have to go to that diner around the corner."

Aubrey hesitates. "I should get back to the firm."

"Four years Aubrey. We haven't seen each other in four years. You can get some coffee." Chloe points out and this time Aubrey doesn't protest when Chloe starts dragging her down the street.

They get a table and Chloe takes a grateful sip of the coffee that their waitress pours. "Okay, now I'm starting to feel human again." She tells Aubrey as she puts down her mug. "I swear I hardly slept last night, the bed was so uncomfortable."

For a minute, Aubrey just looks at her before finally smiling and shaking her head. "I seriously do not understand you Chloe Beale." She says with another head shake. "You just spent the night in jail and your only complaints involve the mattress? I don't know how you do it. I would have been terrified."

Chloe shrugs. "It wasn't so bad. I knew I was going to be getting out soon. Though if I had known you were my lawyer I probably would have slept a little better." She remarks. "Though I never would have guessed that you were working at a law firm."

Aubrey looks a little self-conscious. "Well my dad-"

"I thought the plan was to avoid your dad at all costs." Chloe interrupts. "You used to talk about how you didn't want to be anything like him."

Aubrey won't meet her gaze. "That was a long time ago Chloe. Four years can change a lot about a person."

Before Chloe can comment, their waitress returns to take their orders and Chloe orders enough food to make up for the fact that Aubrey declines to get anything. "I used to wonder what you were up to. I never imagined you as a lawyer." Chloe remarks when the waitress has left once more.

"It's not like I'm a waitress or some sort of sales girl. Being a lawyer is a perfectly respectful job." Aubrey bristles, curling her fingers against the palms of her hands.

"No, I know." Chloe agrees quickly before Aubrey can get too worked up. She doesn't want to see whether the past four years have made Aubrey more adept at handling her stress. "That's not what I'm saying. I just…you seemed so set on the whole dance studio thing."

Aubrey purses her lips, wrinkling her nose a little. "Well, what have you been doing? Other than getting arrested, of course."

Chloe shrugs. She knows a change of subject when she hears one, but she's not going to press the matter anymore. For now. "Sort of hopping from job to job. I've been living with this really weird girl that I found online but I think she's going to kick me out because she wants to live with her boyfriend. I haven't really decided on what I want to do yet."

"So you're not going to make a career out of saving the environment?" Aubrey says in a slightly teasing tone. "Not going to go save the whales or throw blood on rich ladies' coats?"

Chloe smiles at her friend. "Maybe next week." She shrugs. "I'm not like some environmental nut, I just couldn't stand the thought of them bulldozing the park. Especially if it was just to put up a parking lot. My sister and I used to play there when we were kids."

Aubrey smiles faintly. "You always did seem to have a thing for lost causes." She mutters, almost to herself.

Chloe can tell by her tone of voice that she's lumping herself into that category. A computer had put them in the same room freshmen year and Aubrey had been so painfully shy that she'd spent the first week organizing and reorganizing everything in their small space. Including all of Chloe's things, which had been haphazardly arranged on her side of the room. Aubrey had eventually opened up about her military father, her perfectionist mother and the fact that she was disappointing both of them by being at Barden and participating in the Bellas instead of going to Harvard or Yale or some other Ivy League school. She'd seemed shocked when Chloe had suggested they room together during sophomore year and they'd kept in touch throughout the summer and Chloe eventually became the only person that Aubrey felt she could open up to about the pressures that her father put on her and her need to make him proud. Things had taken a turn for the worst the summer after junior year after word of Aubrey's performance at Nationals got back to her father and Aubrey had ended up coming to stay with Chloe for the last two months before school. She'd sworn several times that summer and throughout the school year that she was never going back home, that she was finally going to do something for herself, be the person she wanted to be. Chloe feels a pang in her chest to realize that that has somehow changed.

"It's good to see you, Bree." Chloe says, reaching across the table to take the girl's hand. "I've missed you."

Whatever Aubrey is about to say is silenced when the waitress returns with Chloe's food and the red-head lets herself be distracted by the eggs and toast and bacon and the heavenly smells of real food. She might have only been in jail over night, but she feels ravenous. "Aren't you hungry?" Chloe questions around a mouthful of scrambled eggs.

Aubrey looks amused. "Even if I was, I'd be afraid that if I even looked at your food you'd stab me with your fork. It looks like you haven't eaten in weeks." She points out.

"I need to refuel because I can save the world." Chloe remarks. She pushes the small plate of toast over to the blonde. "I guess I can spare some toast. Since you did bail me out of jail and all."

Aubrey hesitates for a minute before picking up a piece of the triangular bread and spreading on a little bit of jam. "Do you keep in touch with any of the Bellas?" She questions.

"Just Beca really." Chloe answers, finishing up her eggs and picking up a piece of bacon. "She and Jesse are in L.A."

Something that looks a little like jealousy crosses Aubrey's face but it's gone before Chloe can even be sure it was there at all. "Well. Good for her."

Chloe knows better than to try and press the issue when it comes to Beca. They eat in a companionable silence and Chloe feels happy in spite of the fact that she's just got of jail and still has criminal charges to deal with. Aubrey pays the check because she insists that the firm will reimburse her and they head back out into the bright morning sunshine.

"I really should get back." Aubrey says, slipping her hands into her jacket pockets. "I have some paperwork I need to handle."

"Yeah, I guess I should head home and shower. I probably smell like jail." Chloe says with a shrug.

Aubrey makes a face. "Well…I didn't say want to say anything…" She teases.

Chloe bumps Aubrey's hip with her own. "Oh whatever." She pulls her phone out of her purse. "Do you have a new number? I don't want the only time that we see each other to be when we're dealing with this bullshit court stuff. We still have a lot to catch up on."

Aubrey assures her that the number is still the same and she also promises that she'll call when she's done with work for the day so they can go out for drinks or something and when she flags down a cab to take her back to the office she has a wide smile on her face. She's relieved to find that Chloe hasn't changed one bit. It's nice to be around someone who she isn't constantly trying to prove herself to, someone who doesn't think that she's the world's biggest failure. She realizes that she never got the chance to tell Chloe that she missed her too; she's missed having Chloe in her life for the past four years, she's just never realized how much until this morning.

* * *

Chloe is relieved to find that her surly roommate is already gone for the day. She showers, puts on a pair of sweats and a tank top and falls into bed, pulling her pillow over her head and falling right to sleep. When she wakes up it's dark outside and she feels disoriented and confused, trying to figure out what time it is and if she's supposed to be doing anything. Chloe checks her phone and finds that it's just a little past eight o'clock. She's got two missed calls from Justine and a text from Aubrey asking if she's still interested in drinks. It's been a few hours since she sent the text but Chloe hopes the offer still stands. _Sorry, just woke up_, Chloe texts back, _I'm always up for drinks_.

Chloe goes into the living room to find her roommate, Spencer, passing a joint to her boyfriend. She exhales a stream of smoke as she gives Chloe the once over. "I didn't hear you come in last night." She remarks in a tone that lets Chloe know that she's prying for some juicy details.

Shrugging, Chloe goes into the kitchen and pours herself a glass of orange juice. "I was out." She wrinkles her nose. "Would you mind not smoking out here? It's bad for my vocal chords."

"Oh right, I forgot. You're still trying to do the whole singing thing." Spencer smirks. "I'm not sure if doing a community theatre show really counts though."

"Every little bit helps." Chloe shoots back with forced cheerfulness, taking her glass and returning to her bedroom. She slams the door shut for effect, even though she's sure Spencer and her boyfriend could care less. If the rent wasn't so cheap she'd try and find a new place. Seriously, living with someone she found online was not one of her better decisions.

There's a text from Aubrey waiting on her phone. _I didn't hear from you, so I went ahead and ordered takeout. Sorry! You can come over if you want. I've got wine._

Chloe lets out a sigh of relief. She really doesn't want to be stuck here with Spencer and her toasted boyfriend all night. _Sounds amazing_, she texts back. _I feel like I could drink a whole bottle_.

Aubrey texts her the address and Chloe puts on a pair of jeans and a baby pink top, throwing her hair into a messy ponytail and slipping on the first pair of flats she can find. She doesn't bother to say goodbye to Spencer as she leaves, slamming the front door behind her.

Aubrey's place isn't far so Chloe walks, even though there's a bit of chill in the air. Aubrey buzzes her up; Chloe's never lived in a place that had actual security, let alone a fancy lobby and an elevator but she can't imagine Aubrey living with some girl that she met off the Internet or somewhere that has bars on the windows.

Aubrey's apartment looks like one of those show apartments that the complex decorates and uses to try and entice people into living there. The carpet is plush and white and the walls are painted a crisp cream color. There are a few framed pieces of art on the walls and everything matches. Like everything. Down to the little pillows on the couches and the placemats on the table. Chloe's trying to take everything in without making it look like she's openly staring but she's sure that she's not doing a very good job. Not that Aubrey should be surprised, seeing as she's always been the nosy type. The only personal touches outside of the bedroom (which Chloe can't see but assumes is a touch more Aubrey) are on the refrigerator; there's a picture of Aubrey in a graduation gown next to her older brother and another of her standing next to her father. Neither of them are smiling in the picture. There's also the phrase _be happy and beautiful forever_ that looks like it was cut out of a magazine and for some reason it strikes Chloe as a little sad and she's not sure why.

"Here." Aubrey interrupts Chloe's thoughts by handing her a glass of wine. "You sounded like you could really use this."

Chloe gives her a grateful smile and takes a sip. "Oh my God yes." She lets out an exasperated sigh. "My roommate was making me crazy."

They go sit on Aubrey's couch and Chloe tucks her feet underneath her, angling so she can face Aubrey. Aubrey mirrors her posture and it reminds her of when they used to sit on one of their beds back at Barden and talk for hours about anything: classes, relationships, the Bellas. It didn't matter because they could keep a conversation going for hours.

"Didn't you say you met her online?" Aubrey questions, arching an eyebrow. Chloe shrugs. "She could have turned out to be some sort of crazy killer and murdered you in your sleep."

"She seemed normal at first." Chloe protests and Aubrey just rolls her eyes. "She's not a killer but she's definitely a bitch." She finishes her glass of wine in one swallow. "This has been a long day."

Aubrey brings over the wine bottle and keeps it on the coffee table because it seems like it's going to be one of those nights. They mostly reminisce about their four years at Barden and the year they lived together after graduation when they were trying to navigate the so-called real world. Aubrey doesn't think that she's laughed so much in years and it feels good to let go of the tension that constantly lives in her body, always forcing her to stand up straight, walk tall and mirror her father's fierce expression. She feels like the Aubrey that she was in Barden instead of the one that she's become since going to law school and working for her father.

When the takeout shows up they eat straight out of the cartons, even though Aubrey points out that she has perfectly good plates in the cabinets. "Who needs plates?" Chloe points out. "Pretend we're back at Barden." And, just like at Barden, she has to use a fork instead of chopsticks because she still hasn't mastered the art, in spite of Aubrey's attempts to show her how to position her fingers.

They drink too much wine and eat too much food and when Aubrey finally looks at the clock she winces. "Oh, God. I have to be up in five hours." She moans, pushing her hair out of her face. "I need to go to bed."

Chloe makes a face. "Boo. Take a sick day." She tops off their glasses, finishing up another bottle of wine.

"My dad would kill me." Aubrey shakes her head. "You know how he is. He'd show up here and when he found out I was playing hooky he'd just kill me." She drinks the wine that Chloe just poured anyway. "I hate working for him." She mumbles, looking down at the contents of her glass.

"So why do you?" Chloe questions, putting her hand on her friend's knee. They've been doing a good job of sidestepping any talk about Aubrey's dad or her job because Chloe had assumed that when Aubrey was ready to talk about it, she'd broach the subject. Just like their college days.

Aubrey gets to her feet, setting her glass on the coffee table. "I really need to go to bed." She says in a way that lets Chloe know that she's not going to talk about it any more.

Chloe teeters to her feet as well, her head spinning. She's going to be hung-over tomorrow but she's too lightheaded to care about that now. "We need to do this again." She tells Aubrey as she reaches for her jacket, squinting in an attempt to make the room stop spinning.

Aubrey smiles at her. "You okay there, Chlo?" Chloe gives her a thumbs-up. "You should just stay. So you don't have to walk back."

"Excellent idea." Chloe tosses her jacket onto the floor. "You were always full of those Bree."

Aubrey's queen-size bed is neatly made with little matching pillows that Chloe barely bothers to toss onto the floor as she flops face down on the bed, sighing at the unfair softness of the mattress and the pillows. She listens to Aubrey brushing her teeth and changing into her pajamas and she pretends to already be asleep when Aubrey tugs the comforter out from under her and tucks it around her shoulders. Aubrey gets into bed beside Chloe and smiles at her friend in the darkness. "I'm glad you're here." She says softly even though Chloe is already asleep and she falls asleep with a smile on her face.

When Chloe wakes up the following morning it's to the sounds of Aubrey throwing up in the bathroom. Her head is pounding and the taste in her mouth is horrible and it takes her a minute to remember what happened last night and why she's in an unfamiliar room still wearing the clothes she left the house in. She winces when she turns toward the bathroom, feeling a little like throwing up herself. She also still feels a little bit drunk. "Bree? Are you okay?"

Aubrey just moans in response and retches again. Chloe sits up and readjusts to the feeling of being upright. She stumbles into Aubrey's kitchen and gets her friend a glass of water, which she brings into the bathroom. Aubrey gets to her feet and takes a sip of the water. "Come back to bed." Chloe wants to do that herself.

Aubrey gives her an annoyed look. "I have to go to work. Remember?" She turns on the sink and starts furiously brushing her teeth.

"You're sick. Even your dad has to cut you some slack for that." Chloe points out.

"I'm not sick Chloe, I'm hung over." Aubrey snaps around her toothbrush. "If I didn't come to work and my dad found out why…it's weakness. You know how my dad feels about that."

Chloe sighs. "Your dad is an asshole."

Aubrey glares at her but doesn't say anything. She finishes brushing her teeth and pushes past Chloe and goes into her closet. She doesn't emerge again until she's wearing a pantsuit almost identical to the one that she was wearing yesterday. "You can stay." Her voice is a little less harsh now. "There's aspirin in the medicine cabinet and there's a spare key under the mat. Just lock the door when you leave."

"Bree-" Chloe starts to protest.

"I have to go, Chloe." Aubrey interrupts. "Just drop it, okay? Go back to sleep."

Aubrey leaves the apartment and Chloe sighs, getting back into bed because she can't think of anything else to do. She falls asleep wishing that Aubrey hadn't looked so unhappy and when she wakes up again it's the middle of the day and her head is pounding. She drinks some water and takes some of the aspirin Aubrey had mentioned and takes the opportunity to study Aubrey's room, something she hadn't thought to do last night. There's a bookshelf containing law textbooks and a few well-read novels and a handful of the chick-flicks and romantic foreign movies that Aubrey loved to watch when they were in college. Chloe studies the framed pictures that Aubrey has on her nightstand and smiles when she picks up one of them together during their senior year at Barden. In fact, most of the pictures are of them, which makes her both happy and a little sad at the same time. It's not hard to think about Aubrey failing to make any other close friends during her years at law school.

Chloe makes Aubrey's bed as best as she can, even though she's sure that she doesn't put all the decorative pillows back the way they should go but oh well. She cleans up the takeout from the night before and locks the door behind her and heads back to her tiny, shitty apartment with her shitty roommate.

Chloe spends the day applying for various jobs online and pursuing the Broadway forums that she likes to check on a daily basis to see if there's any new shows opening or any off-off Broadway production that would be willing to take a chance on a redheaded girl from Georgia. She has yet to let go of the idea that she can really be something someday, that her voice is going to save her from temp jobs and having to meet roommates online. Chloe tries not to let Spencer's words from the night before get to her; so what if she's only done a few community theatre shows since graduating Barden? Everyone has to start somewhere.

It's a little after six when her phone rings and Chloe puts down the Libba Bray novel she's been reading and smiles when she sees Aubrey's picture on the screen. "Hey Bree."

"I'm sorry I acted like such a bitch this morning." Aubrey apologizes without preamble. She's never been the type to apologize willingly, so whenever those dreaded words have to come out of her mouth she likes to get them over with as quickly as possible. "I was just sick and unhappy and I shouldn't have snapped at you like that. So I'm sorry."

Chloe smiles. "It's okay, I understand. I wish you hadn't had to go in."

"My dad took one look at me and could tell I was hung over." Aubrey sighs. "He didn't talk to me the whole day and had me filing papers."

Has Chloe mentioned that she really can't stand Aubrey's dad? Because she really can't. She's met him once and that was more than enough for her. "Sounds like a shitty day."

"You have no idea." Aubrey sighs again. "Do you want to come over and watch a movie or something? If you're not busy."

"Yeah, that sounds great." Chloe assures her friend.

Aubrey sounds almost relieved, like she was expecting Chloe to turn down her proposal. "Text me your address and I'll pick you up." She tells her friend. "I'm leaving the office now."

Chloe sends Aubrey the necessary text and then changes out of her laying around the house clothes and, after a split-second of debate, packs an overnight bag. Just in case. She doesn't say anything to Spencer as she leaves the apartment and Spencer doesn't try to engage her in conversation so all is right in the world.

On the short drive to Aubrey's apartment they sing along with Aubrey's Dixie Chicks CD and laugh when they get looks from the people in neighboring cars. "I needed this." Aubrey says as they walk through the parking garage and toward the residents' entrance. "This is exactly what I needed to make up for my shitty day."

Chloe gives Aubrey a side hug. "That's what friends are for Bree."

* * *

Their girls' nights become a weekly thing and soon Chloe is spending more time over at Aubrey's than at her own place, which is just fine with her. Some nights they cook dinner but most of the time they order out and have a few glasses of wine and watch the cheesy reality shows that Aubrey loves. They go out Friday nights to a little bar close enough to Aubrey's place that they don't have to worry about getting a cab or staying sober enough to drive. The place does karaoke on Fridays and they quickly become well known among the regulars for belting out old show tunes and female power ballads.

The next few months pass this way and even though Chloe can't find a job that she enjoys or a role that seems made for her, she's still happier than she's been in a while because she's got her best friend back and she can't help but think that tying herself to that tree or trying to destroy a bulldozer were the best decisions she's made in a long time.

Being around Aubrey has also brought up all those more than friendly feelings that Chloe had nearly forgotten she'd harbored for her friend during their college years. She's always been the type of person who felt like she had a lot of love to give and had found herself attracted more to the person than the gender, so it had never bothered her when she happened to make out with a girl at a party or have sex with a guy in the showers. The more she got to know Aubrey the more she started to love her, both as a trusted friend and maybe a little something more. She figured it was only natural, given the amount of time they spent together and their penchant for sharing a bed even though their dorm came equipped with two perfectly good twin mattresses. She and Aubrey even kissed once (or twice…or four times) but they'd never broached the subject after the fact and Chloe had just assumed that it was a little bit of college experimentation. But now that she's rekindled her friendship with Aubrey, she can't help but wonder.

Sometimes Chloe can't help but wonder if Aubrey's thoughts are similar to her own. Aubrey has a tendency to reach for Chloe in her sleep or take her hand when they're walking to the bar. Sometimes her touches will linger, feather light on Chloe's back or hip and she'll give Chloe this megawatt smile that makes her heart flutter.

One Friday night, they're at their usual table and Aubrey is complaining about how unhappy she's been at work and how much of a hard-ass her father is. "Just quit." Chloe interjects. "Why are you doing this to yourself?"

Aubrey looks at her like she's grown an extra head. "I can't just quit. I'd be unemployed. This is what I went to school to do."

"But why?" Chloe questions. "Because _you_ wanted to? Or because your dad wanted you to go?" Aubrey doesn't answer. "Last I heard that was the last thing you wanted to do."

Aubrey purses her lips, her expression growing darker. "Yeah, well, it wasn't exactly like we kept in touch."

Chloe holds up a hand. "Whoa. Don't make it sound like that was my fault. _You_ stopped talking to _me._ _You _stopped returning _my_ calls when you moved out. Remember? You can't put that on me."

"Well I really didn't want to deal with your attitude when I told you I was going to law school." Aubrey snaps back. "I thought maybe four years would have changed your tune but I should have known better. Chloe Beale always has to have an opinion."

Chloe rolls her eyes. "You've just never liked any opinion that wasn't your own." She mutters. "Unless it's your dad's, of course."

Aubrey narrows her eyes. "You don't know me." Even as she says the words, they sound like a lie.

"I know you well enough to know that you're miserable. I know that you hate your job and you hate your dad and you should be doing something else." Chloe fires back. "You want to be his perfect little daughter, even if it's killing you."

Aubrey stands up suddenly, bumping into the table and knocking over her drink. "I'm not going to stay here and listen to this." She snaps. She slides out of the booth and stalks toward the door, ignoring the curious looks from the people at neighboring tables.

Chloe hesitates for a brief moment before getting up as well and hurrying after her. She finds Aubrey leaning against the wall, her hand pressed to her mouth, trying to regain her composure. "Aubrey-"

Aubrey turns away from her. "Leave me alone." She snaps. "I think you've said enough."

"Don't be like this." Chloe comes to stand in front of Aubrey. "Don't be stubborn and don't shut me out."

"What else is there to say? You're right. You're always right. I hate my job! Okay? Is that what you want to hear? I don't want to be a lawyer! I don't-" But she stops short, that all too familiar look crossing her face and Chloe knows what's going to happen next if she doesn't calm down.

"Okay, Bree, take a breath." Chloe rubs her friend's back and Aubrey presses her hand over her mouth again. "Breathe. You're okay."

Aubrey starts crying and puts her arms around Chloe. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I stopped talking to you. I just…I don't know why I still need his approval. I thought if I came to him with a plan and got a loan from the bank for the studio that he'd see I wasn't such a fuck-up. But he wasn't going to support me unless I was doing exactly what he wanted." She continues to cry into Chloe's shoulder, holding tightly to the red-head. "I couldn't talk to you because I couldn't bring myself to tell you that I was letting my dad dictate my life. I knew you would be disappointed in me."

Chloe holds her friend tightly. "Shh Bree." She strokes her hair. "I could never be disappointed in you. I just want you to be happy." That seems to only make Aubrey cry even harder and she clings to Chloe like she's in danger of drowning. "Shh, don't cry. Please don't cry."

Aubrey pulls away slightly, sniffing and taking a few deep breathes in an attempt to regain her composure. She wipes at the tears on her cheeks. "I'm so-sorry." She hiccups. "I'm such a mess. Just look at me."

So Chloe does. Sure Aubrey's eyes are puffy and her makeup is streaked and her nose is red and she knows that her friend has had better moments but it's a little hard to remember them because all Chloe can see is how truly beautiful Aubrey is. So she leans in and kisses her, putting her hands on Aubrey's hips so she can pull the blonde in closer.

For once, Aubrey doesn't think. She doesn't overanalyze and she doesn't wonder what will happen next. She just does what she wants to do and what she wants to do is let Chloe keep kissing her. She figures this is probably what CPR feels like, because it's like she can suddenly breathe again, like the world is rushing back to her with a sudden clarity.

Someone wolf-whistles behind them and Aubrey pulls away, her face flushing with heat. Chloe smirks, hooking her fingers through Aubrey's belt loops. "Well." She can't think of how to follow that statement with anything other than _I want to keep kissing you_ so she decides to let that single word stand alone.

Aubrey swallows and looks at Chloe. "I think I'm done drinking for tonight. We should go back to the apartment."

"Best idea I've heard in a while, Posen." Chloe agrees. She loves how Aubrey says 'the apartment' instead of 'my apartment' because it really is starting to feel like their place together. It feels much more like home than her apartment with Spencer.

They get back to the apartment and Chloe gets Aubrey a glass of water because she still seems a little emotional from her crying fit outside of the bar. "You'll feel better if you get into something more comfortable." Chloe suggests as she leans against the kitchen counter.

Aubrey arches an eyebrow. "That sounds like a proposition."

Chloe can't help but grin. "Well, I didn't mean it like that. But, I mean, if that's the way you want to look at it…"

They go into the bedroom and Aubrey feels like all her inhibitions are completely gone. She pulls Chloe to her for another kiss, pushing her hands through her red hair and pressing them closer together. They eventually fall into bed in a tangle of limbs and half-shed clothes and Aubrey thinks that it's really, really nice to just stop thinking.

In the morning Aubrey wakes up before Chloe and finds that, even though they've drifted apart slightly during the night, their hands are still interlocked and she can't help but smile. She's never felt perfect in her entire life; her parents certainly never made her feel that way and she never felt like she measured up to their expectations. But she feels a little bit perfect now and it's nice not to have to work so hard or change who she is to get someone to think of her that way. She could get used to it.

* * *

For a while, things are good. Better than good; perfect even. Chloe spends about as much time at Aubrey's as she used to, though they usually don't see the end of Aubrey's stupid reality shows because they get distracted doing other things and Aubrey finds it hard to leave in the mornings not because she hates her job and wants to do something else but because she finds it nearly impossible to uncurl herself from Chloe and face the big bad world outside the front door. For the time being, Chloe lets the subject of Aubrey's profession drop, even though she's secretly hoping that her friend (girlfriend?) will tell her dad to fuck off and finally open the dance studio she's been talking about since sophomore year. When Chloe's doing temp work as a secretary or some other job that requires her to sit behind a desk or file things all day she lets her mind wander to a future where Aubrey teaches dance to adorably uncoordinated little kids and she has the lead in a musical that people actually want to come see. Maybe they'll move to New York or L.A. or anywhere. She can act and sing anywhere and Aubrey can teach anywhere. She's not picky in her fantasies. Chloe devotes any time she's not working or with Aubrey to keeping up with the different shows that are holding auditions and sends out her headshots and, in some cases, videos of herself singing. So far she hasn't gotten any responses, but she's feeling hopeful.

"Your court date is coming up." Aubrey tells Chloe one night over wine and pizza. "You're going to need to come into the office to get prepped."

Chloe makes a face. "Ugh, why can't they just leave it alone? I mean they've already bulldozed the park, who cares if I tried to blow up a piece of their equipment?" She takes a bit of pizza, but she still feels too dejected to really enjoy it. "Is your dad going to be there?"

"Well, it is his practice so, yes, I think so." Aubrey remarks. "It won't be that bad, okay? I'm your lawyer, remember? It's my job to take care of you."

Chloe smiles at her. "I know." She runs her thumb along the ridge of Aubrey's knuckles. "You should let someone take care of you once and a while too, Bree."

Aubrey's face flushes and she drops her gaze for a minute before looking back at Chloe. "You're doing a pretty good job." She admits, like it's some big secret that she should be ashamed of or something. Like she shouldn't let people take care of her.

Two days later, Chloe finds herself in the waiting room of Posen and Associates, fidgeting uncomfortably in her slacks and blouse, her skull prickly and itchy because Aubrey told her that she should put her hair up in an attempt to tame her curls. She doesn't know how Aubrey can stand to dress like this everyday; she already wants to kill herself.

Finally the secretary tells Chloe that they're ready for her in the boardroom and shows her to a stuffy room with a huge mahogany table and a dozen chairs, most of which are empty. The whole right side of the room is made up of floor-to-ceiling windows but it doesn't make the room seem any less imposing. At the head of the table is Aubrey's father, Marc, and Aubrey is sitting to his right, looking stiff and businesslike, a female clone of her father.

"Let's get this over with." Marc says gruffly when Chloe takes a seat across from Aubrey. He flips open the thin folder in front of him. "Okay, so this is a basic destruction of property thing." He skims the top paper.

"Yes, sir." Aubrey opens her own, identical folder. "Our best bet in this case-"

"We'll shoot straight for community service." Marc continues like Aubrey hasn't spoken at all. Aubrey shuts her mouth, cowed. "It seems unlikely that this group will want to go for a jail sentence but we should be prepared in the event that they do try and make this into a bigger mess."

Aubrey clears her throat. "Yes, I've already drawn up a plan on the off chance that-"

"If they try and go for a jail sentence, you're going to want to see if they'll just accept a fine and community service." Marc is looking at Chloe like Aubrey isn't even there at all. "Are you prepared to pay a fine?"

Chloe wants to say _hell no, I'm working as a temp and I think I have five dollars in my wallet_. But what comes out is, "I thought Aubrey was my lawyer."

Marc frowns. "Yes, well. My daughter did accept your case without consulting with me, but I can assure you that you're in capable hands because I'll be handling your case. I prefer not to deal with another Tillerman fiasco."

Chloe looks over at Aubrey but her eyes are trained downward. Chloe can still see that Aubrey's cheeks are red and her breathing is growing more rapid. Unfortunately this is something that her father notices as well. "Aubrey, don't you dare start with this again. I will not have a partner at my firm who can't compose herself during a simple briefing."

Aubrey gives a quick nod but she doesn't say anything for fear of not being able to keep herself from getting sick. She feels thirteen years old again and so ashamed because of her father's scolding that she can't keep from rushing to the bathroom and throwing up. Of course that only made things worse and further cemented her father's beliefs that she was nothing but weak.

Chloe's brow knits. "Mr. Posen, with all due respect-"

"It's fine Chloe." Aubrey snaps, her head jerking up. "Leave it." She hisses.

Marc looks at his daughter with a haughty expression. "We've talked about your professionalism several times before. It's not a conversation I want to have again."

Aubrey swallows. "Yes, sir."

"So, as I said, agreeing to community service and paying a fine will be your best bet to avoid any additional jail time." Marc continues as though the previous few minutes had never happened. "We can argue for time already served."

Chloe looks over at Aubrey. "What do you believe is the best way to proceed?" She questions with an overly formal professional tone, pointedly avoiding eye contact with Marc.

Aubrey's eyes slide over toward her father before returning to Chloe. "I think agreeing to pay the fine should be a last ditch effort. Community service and time already served should be our opening hand."

Chloe nods. "Okay. That's what we'll do."

Marc makes a note on one of the papers in his folder before snapping it shut. "Your court date is set for next Monday. Be there at seven AM sharp." He gets to his feet and Aubrey practically trips over herself to stand as well. "See you Monday, Miss Beale. My office, Aubrey."

Aubrey doesn't look at Chloe as she follows her father out of the boardroom and Chloe is left staring out the floor to ceiling windows and trying to figure out what the hell just happened. She wants to go in Marc's office and really give him a piece of her mind, to leave with Aubrey and never look back. But she just leaves and hates herself a little bit for it.

Chloe hates to admit that she's waiting pretty much all day to hear from Aubrey but that's how it happens so there's really no point in denying it. She can't focus on anything that she's supposed to be doing because she's too busy replaying the events of the morning in her mind and it makes her sick to think about how Marc treated Aubrey and how Aubrey just sat there and took it. Chloe ends up scorching the pot she's using to make mac and cheese because she's too distracted to remember to add water and Spencer just glares at her from the living room like she's the anti-Christ or something. Chloe spends the rest of the day in her room after that.

Chloe can usually count on Aubrey to call her as soon as she leaves the office but her phone remains silent. She gives the blonde a little leeway because maybe she got caught up with paperwork or maybe she needs to charge her phone or maybe her dad just got tired of having such a disappointment for a daughter and killed her and threw her down the elevator shaft. Okay, that probably didn't happen but now Chloe's brain is working on overdrive so she finally calls Aubrey, who answers after the fourth ring in a terse and clipped tone.

"Uh, hey." Chloe tries not to read too much into Aubrey's tone. "I…uh…you didn't call so I was just checking…on you."

"I wasn't aware that I was supposed to check in with you at a specific time." Aubrey says. "You don't have to check on me. I'm a grown woman."

Chloe feels a little foolish and bit like she overreacted and she knows that she should have given Aubrey her space and avoided the confrontation that's obviously about the happen. "Bree, what's the matter?" She questions, even though she knows it's a little like poking the bear.

"What's the matter?" Aubrey repeats. "Well, let's see. I spent the entire day being yelled at and then ignored by my father because he thinks that I'm not being professional. That I'm letting my personal history with our clients affect my ability to do my job. Not that he believes I can do that anyway, which he made no secret about. You shouldn't have said anything to him, Chloe. You should have just let him talk and treat me like I wasn't there. This whole thing could have been avoided if you'd just kept your mouth shut."

"I'm sorry that I couldn't just sit there and let him treat you like shit Bree." Chloe retorts. "You shouldn't let him talk to you like that either. That's bullshit and you know it. You are so much better than he gives you credit for."

Aubrey scoffs. "That's just your opinion, Chloe." She points out snidely.

"Why is _my_ opinion the one that doesn't matter?!" Chloe can't keep herself from shouting. "Why is his opinion the only one you listen to?"

"He's my father, Chloe." Aubrey says this like it's common sense and Chloe is simple for not realizing this. "He obviously knows what he's talking about."

Chloe barks out a laugh. "Oh my God are you serious? That's bullshit Aubrey! And if you really believe that then you're delusional."

"Are you sure about that? Because you're starting to sound a little bit like him." Aubrey snaps. Chloe starts to protest but Aubrey doesn't give her the chance. "I'm done talking about this Chloe. I think we both need a little space tonight." She says this in a tone that leaves no room for argument.

"Fine." Chloe snaps. "Sounds great." She hangs up the phone and tosses it onto her bed to avoid throwing it into the wall. It really doesn't sound great at all. It sounds horrible in fact but she feels angry and stubborn and hurt all at once. If Aubrey wants to push her away, fine. If Aubrey would prefer to kill herself trying to make her father happy, fine. She's done. She's done getting yelled at and she's done being put down for trying to be nice. If that's the way Aubrey wants it, then fine.

Chloe passes the next several hours stewing in her own anger and finally forces herself to go to bed just to give herself a little bit of relief. But she can't get comfortable and she can't turn her mind off and she keeps waking up and wondering why she's here in this shitty apartment instead of cuddled against Aubrey. And when she remembers their conversation it makes her mad and upset all over again.

When she wakes up yet again she feels like it was more than just her rambling thoughts that pulled her out of her restless sleep. Chloe stares up at the ceiling for a minute, trying to orient herself and it takes her a second longer to realize that there's someone knocking on the front door. A glance at the clock tells her that it's after one in the morning and she feels like the only people who would be knocking on the door at this hour are the types of people she really doesn't want to let into the apartment.

But the knocking continues to Chloe tosses back the blankets and heads into the living room. She glances over at Spencer's closed door but there's no indication that her roommate notices or cares about the knocking.

When Chloe opens the door, she's shocked to see Aubrey standing on the other side. Aubrey looks nervous and uncertain and it reminds Chloe of the Aubrey that she'd first met freshman year. "I'm sorry it's late." Aubrey says. "Can I come in?"

Chloe nods and quickly directs Aubrey to her bedroom. She's glad that it's dark so the blonde can't see the state of the living room, which is like a messier extension of Spencer's bedroom, or the kitchen, which definitely needs some TLC. Chloe shuts her bedroom door and switches on the bedside lamp. "It's…uh…I need to straighten up." She mutters, as she glances around her small room, trying to see it as Aubrey might. The space is pretty much the polar opposite of Aubrey's homey and tidy apartment and she doesn't know why she's suddenly embarrassed.

But Aubrey barely spares the space a second glance. "I'm sorry. For everything I said earlier. And I'm sorry that I'm always like this. I wouldn't blame you if you just got sick of my shit and never wanted to see me again because it's not fair that I keep yelling at you when I really want to be yelling at my father. But I really hope that doesn't happen because I don't know what I'd do if you…if I didn't have you." Aubrey's voice is thick and Chloe can tell that she's trying to get through whatever she has to say without crying. "I can be better."

Chloe shakes her head. "Bree, you don't have to be better. I just want you to be yourself." She says softly.

Aubrey's eyes fill with tears. "Why? I'm horrible. I'm bitchy and controlling and I'm mean to the only person that I love." She shakes her head. "I don't know why I'm like this." She says softly.

"Well, your dad is kind of an asshole." Chloe points out. "It's not like he's ever been easy on you."

"I know, I know." Aubrey wipes at her eyes. "But if I keep acting like this…he's still winning. I don't want him to take you from me too."

Chloe puts her arms around Aubrey and holds her close. "That's never going to happen, Bree." She kisses the blonde's temple. "I promise."

Aubrey holds onto her like she's afraid of what will happen if she lets go. "I love you. I'm sorry."

Chloe pulls away just enough to ensure that they're face to face. "You love me?" She questions, a slow smile spreading across her face.

"Of course, you idiot." Aubrey rolls her eyes but she's smiling a little too and she slips her hand around the curve of Chloe's neck. "What's not to love?"

Chloe shrugs. "You're right, I am pretty amazing."

"And so modest." Aubrey smirks as she leans into to kiss Chloe. "I'm sorry." She says softly against her lips.

"Shh." Chloe tucks a stray blonde lock behind Aubrey's ear. "I love you too." Their lips meet and Aubrey breathes the faintest sigh of relief.

Spencer wakes them up a few hours later by throwing Chloe's bedroom door open and standing in the doorway, crossing her arms over her chest and glaring daggers. Chloe lifts her head off Aubrey's shoulder, trying to figure out what the hell is going on and if Spencer really is some sort of crazy killer.

"I don't appreciate being woken up in the middle of the night Chloe." Spencer informs her acidly. "If your girlfriend," she sneers, "is going to show up in the middle of the night for a booty call can she at least have the decency not to pound on the door? I need my sleep."

Spencer slams the door shut without another word and then goes into the living room and cranks the volume on the TV way up so Chloe feels like she's actually watching whatever trashy daytime talk show is on. Aubrey groans and pulls the covers over her head. "Your roommate seems like a real peach."

"That was Spencer on a good day." Chloe remarks, snuggling under the covers with Aubrey. "Don't you have to go to work?"

Aubrey smiles softly. "I'm taking a personal day." She tells her. "My dad is going to have to find someone else to make his coffee."

Chloe drapes her arm over Aubrey's waist, trailing her fingers lightly down the small of her back. "Good idea." She scoots forward to kiss her. "I like it here."

They can hear Spencer banging pots and pans around in the kitchen and slamming cabinets. Aubrey winces. "Maybe we should stay at my place tonight."

**_TBC_**


	2. All the Love and the Lights

**"Fade Up on a Star With it All in Her Sights: All the Love and the Lights That Surround Her"**

Chloe's trial comes and goes without much fanfare. She gets sixty hours of community service and a metaphorical slap on the wrist and then it's all over. Chloe first signs on to do her community service at the local animal shelter but when she shows up at Aubrey's that evening and can't stop crying the blonde suggests that she find somewhere else to finish her hours. The county library seems happy to have her and though it's not exactly stimulating work at least it doesn't make her want to kill herself and take home about fifty animals.

The weather pretty much goes from cold to uncomfortably hot without any form of spring whatsoever; though disappointing, it's not much of a surprise. But the days are longer and once the sun goes down it isn't too hot and Chloe and Aubrey spend last time indoors and more time walking to the shops and restaurants near Aubrey's place and enjoying the sounds of the crickets and the company of the other people braving the humidity. Aubrey feels more buoyant somehow, like a huge weight has been lifted off her shoulders in the weeks since she showed up at Chloe's to issue her tearful apology.

This doesn't escape Chloe's attention either. "You haven't complained about work recently." She remarks as they share a plate of sushi at one of the city's many sushi bars. She never cared for sushi before rekindling her relationship with Aubrey but she's grown to love the spring rolls and spicy tuna rolls over the past few months.

Aubrey looks like she's not sure how to process that comment. "I'm…sorry…?"

"No, I mean, it's good." Chloe tells her. "Not that you complained too much or anything but you…you seem happy."

Aubrey smiles and covers Chloe's hand with her own. "I am happy. With you."

And she is. Happier than she's been since she was a kid and she used to spend the summers with her grandmother in order to get a break from her overbearing parents. Being around Chloe, knowing that she's loved as much as she loves for the first time in her life, it makes it hard to be anything but happy. It's easier not to let her father get to her; it easier to just do as he asks and for the first time let his put-downs go in one ear and out the other. She could never master that technique, not in elementary school, not as a teenager, not as a college student and definitely not as a partner in his firm. But now, knowing that what he says doesn't matter because she can go home at the end of the day and be with someone who doesn't care if she doesn't do everything right, who doesn't think it's frivolous that she likes to watch _The Bachelor_ or sing in the shower, it just makes it easier.

Chloe beams. "I'm happy with you too. Even if you make me eat sushi."

Aubrey rolls her eyes. "Oh please. Like you don't enjoy it." She points a chopstick toward Chloe's empty plate. "What happened to all your tuna rolls, Beale?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Chloe says innocently, batting her eyelashes.

One of Chloe's favorite things about doing her community service in the library is the fact that her boss doesn't care if she wastes time on the computer as long as the books are appropriately shelved and there's no one else hanging around. And seeing as people apparently don't read anymore, there's rarely anyone else in the library aside from Chloe and Rhoda, who has been working at the library pretty much since books were invented. At least, that's Chloe's opinion.

Chloe is diligent in few areas of her life; she knows this is one of her short comings: the fact that she gets distracted easily and has a half dozen half-finished projects laying around her house. But one of the things she is committed to is checking the Broadway casting websites and forums on a daily basis. She knows that she's never really going to get her chance to shine if she sticks around here doing community theatre productions or acting as the co-director of some elementary school play. She's ready for the next step, her chance to get on stage and really shine. Chloe knows one of these days she's going to find a post on one of these websites that changes everything.

That day, it turns out, is a perfectly normal Wednesday. Chloe is clicking around one casting director's page when she finds an open casting call for the role of Marilyn Monroe in the hit musical _Bombshell. _The show is only looking to recast its matinee Marilyn but it's still a huge opportunity and Chloe reads the blurb several times to make sure that she's not misreading something. She's been a Broadway devotee ever since her parents took her to New York for her eighth birthday to see a show and enjoy the sights and since that moment she's never wanted to do anything else. She's never seen the new and much-lauded _Bombshell _but she does know that Karen Cartwright got her start originating the role of Marilyn. She was a nobody until she walked into the audition and wowed the directors and Chloe can't help but think that she could do that too. Walk in an unassuming Southern girl and walk out a new Broadway star. Hey, it could happen.

Chloe copies down all the necessary information and e-mails the link to the page to herself just to be on the safe side. On her way to Aubrey's from the library she picks up the original cast recording of the show and already plans to spend the night memorizing all the songs. She only has a small window to send in her headshot and a tape of her reading some of the lines and belting out the songs so she doesn't have time to waste.

Aubrey is enthusiastic when Chloe tells her about the casting call and makes it seem like Chloe already has it in the bag. Chloe makes the mistake of asking Aubrey to help her learn the songs and run lines and it's like the old Aubrey Posen of the Barden Bellas reemerges and she's glad that there's only one video from the stage production online, otherwise she'd be learning the entire choreography as well. For all her failings as captain of the Bellas, Aubrey was great at whipping the girls into shape and getting them performance ready in no time, so for that, Chloe is grateful.

Two days later Chloe feels like she knows every song from _Bombshell_, even the ones that Marilyn doesn't sing and she's almost got all the dialogue down too. She and Aubrey have been marathoning Marilyn Monroe movies, sharing a bottle of wine and practicing their breathy Marilyn impressions.

"Are you going to dye your hair?" Aubrey questions as they watch the end of _Some Like It Hot_, laying on their stomachs on the bed in front of Aubrey's laptop.

"Marilyn wasn't naturally blonde." Chloe points out, possessively touching her fiery curls. "I can just wear a wig."

Aubrey smiles. "Good. I love your hair." She runs her fingers through it just to make her point.

"Gentlemen prefer blondes, Aubrey." Chloe argues.

"Well, I'm not a gentleman." Aubrey counters. "Aubrey prefers redheads." She kisses Chloe's cheek.

Chloe smiles and lays her head against Aubrey's shoulder as they watch the end of the movie.

The following day, Aubrey records Chloe singing "Let Me Be Your Star," "I Never Met a Wolf Who Didn't Love to Howl" and "Don't Forget Me," which Chloe considers to be some of the more iconic songs from the play. She might have been drilling them into her head nonstop for the past few days but she really enjoys the music of the show and she almost can't fight down the excitement she feels when she thinks about actually being a part of it. When Chloe finishes singing the last note of "Don't Forget Me," she glances over at Aubrey to find the blonde with tears in her eyes. Chloe makes a face. "That bad huh?"

Aubrey just shakes her head and clasps her hands together. "That was amazing Chloe." She assures her girlfriend. "You're going to knock 'em dead." Chloe's not sure about all that, but it feels good to know that there's at least one person out there who thinks she was made for this part.

"Wish me luck." Chloe says as she sends off the e-mail containing her audition video and headshot.

Aubrey bumps her shoulder against Chloe's. "You don't need it. You've got this."

"Have I mentioned that I love you?" Chloe questions, kissing her. "Because I really love you. Especially when you flatter me."

"You might have mentioned that a few times." Aubrey says with a smile. "But you can always say it again." It's not like she's going to get tired of hearing it.

* * *

Aubrey is singing one of the songs from _Bombshell_ under her breath several days later while making copies for an upcoming deposition. She swallows her words quickly when her father walks in but the slightly annoyed look that Marc gives her lets her know that he heard her anyway.

"Aubrey, I just wanted to say that I'm pleased with your work ethic over the past few months." Marc says, surprising Aubrey by not chastising her for singing in the work place. "I feel like you've shown a real improvement."

For a minute, Aubrey just stares at him, trying to figure out if she's dreaming or maybe this is all some sort of elaborate prank. Because she doesn't think she's ever had a conversation with her father that started out so genially. "Thank you, sir." Aubrey tries to keep her face expressionless.

"Your uncle is considering opening a firm in Houston, as you know." Marc continues and Aubrey nods. The potential split of the Posen brothers has been the talk of the office recently, because apparently there's nothing better to talk about if you're a lawyer for Posen and Associates. "I recommended that he take you with him. As a partner."

Aubrey can't help but smile. "Really? Thank you, sir." She's pretty sure that her father has never recommended her for anything, except for maybe the military academy or finishing school. Neither of which happened, thankfully. "I appreciate your recommendation."

Marc nods. "Keep up the good work and I'm sure you can really make your mark on this firm. I knew there was a respectable woman in there somewhere." He gives her another nod before leaving the room.

Aubrey smiles down at the copies in her hands. She'd been pretty sure that she'd never hear a single word of praise from her father and it feels unbelievably good. Who knew that all it took to get his approval was to think happy thoughts of Chloe throughout the workday to keep her from wanting to kill herself?

She thinks about their conversation for the rest of the day. The fact that she doesn't want to be a lawyer or move to Houston seems to matter little at the moment. All she keeps thinking about is her father's words and the marginal amount of praise that came with them. Aubrey wants desperately to continue to make him proud, to reassure her father that he hasn't wasted his life raising a disappointment of a daughter. Maybe going to Houston wouldn't be so bad; she and Chloe could move together, get their own place and start their own lives. Together. There's nothing keeping Chloe here and the more Aubrey thinks about it, the more that she thinks that maybe being a lawyer wouldn't be so bad. Her uncle isn't nearly the hard-ass that her father is, so maybe she would really enjoy her work away from Marc's overbearing influence. Throughout the course of the day, Aubrey convinces herself that she's going to move to Houston and talks herself out of it in equal measure. She decides not to mention anything to Chloe until she's sure of what she wants to do. Aubrey tries to ignore the fact that the real reason she doesn't want to say anything to Chloe is because she has no idea how to explain why she's willing to move to a totally different state to continue doing something that she hates.

Recently, she's been thinking more and more about opening her own dance studio. Her parents were adamant that she and her brother participate in as many extra circular activities as they possibly could as children, so Aubrey got stuck in a ballet class when she was barely four years old and it was the only parent sanctioned activity that she enjoyed. It was an uphill battle to convince her parents to allow her to continue with ballet but Aubrey never regretted it, even if it meant hurrying from student council meetings to ballet practice and then spending hours working on homework for her AP classes and getting up after a few hours of sleep to do it all over again. She discovered her love of singing when she joined the Bellas but Aubrey's always felt like she was born to dance. She never thought about doing anything with it (and why would she? Her father had made it perfectly clear that she was going to follow up Barden with law school and join him at his firm) until she'd confessed to Chloe during one of their many late night conversations freshman year that she wouldn't mind running her own studio and teaching other little kids how to dance. "You'd be good at it, you're so bossy." Chloe had teased but she'd been the only person who'd made Aubrey believe it could be a possibility. Being with Chloe has rekindled her passion for dance and her desire to help another little girl or boy find the same freedom and escape that she'd found as a kid. Houston and her father's proposition complicate things.

To further complicate things, Aubrey comes home that evening to catch the tail end of a phone conversation that Chloe is having. A conversation that has her grinning like an idiot and profusely thanking whoever is on the other end of the line. "I'll be there. Yes, sir. No, _thank you_. Thank you. I look forward to seeing you too." Chloe hangs up the phone and turns to Aubrey, squealing and launching herself into her girlfriend's arms. "They want me to come to New York and audition! They want me to audition!"

Aubrey's momentary shock at practically being tackled quickly wears off and she wraps her arms around Chloe. "Oh my God! I knew you could do it! You're amazing!" She holds Chloe tightly and momentarily forgets all about Houston and hypothetical dance studios. "When is your audition?"

"Tomorrow. They want me to fly in tomorrow morning. Can you believe it?" Chloe looks a little bit like she's in shock. "Pinch me, I might be dreaming."

"You're not dreaming." Aubrey assures her. "This is amazing Chloe." She takes Chloe's face between her hands. "I knew you could do it." She kisses her.

"It's just an audition." Chloe points out and Aubrey arches an eyebrow. "I'm trying not to jinx it."

Aubrey smiles. "Well, we should celebrate anyway. Because this is still a big deal. An audition for a big Broadway show. I'm so proud of you Chlo."

They go to Chloe's favorite Italian place and drink too much wine and share gelato and as they stumble back to the apartment, Chloe takes Aubrey's hand and grins at the blonde. "You can move to New York with me." Clearly Drunk Chloe cares less about jinxing the audition than Sober Chloe. "We can live in the city together."

For the first time all night, Aubrey thinks about Houston and the law firm. But Chloe looks so happy and now really isn't the time to bring it up. "You gotta get the part first silly." She bumps Chloe's hip with her own.

"Do you think I can?" Chloe questions, her smile fading suddenly. "Honestly?"

"Honestly?" Aubrey repeats. "I think you can do anything."

Aubrey takes Chloe to the airport on her way to work and gives her a smacking kiss and a big bear hug before she leaves the car. "For luck." She tells the redhead. "Not that you need it."

Aubrey keeps her phone on her throughout the day even though it's a big no-no as far as her dad is concerned. But she doesn't want to miss a text or call from Chloe so she's willing to brave her father's wrath. Chloe texts her to let her know that she's safely in New York and then again when she's preparing to walk in for her audition but Aubrey doesn't hear from her again until later that night. Life without Chloe is far less entertaining and noisy than life with Chloe and all of the things that Aubrey used to love about her nice big apartment and having her own space now seem like depressing things. There's no one to drink wine with or watch _America's Next Top Model_ with or talk to and even though she knows that Chloe will be back tomorrow it's still not her favorite evening ever.

Aubrey is getting out of the shower when her phone starts ringing and she quickly picks up when she sees Chloe's picture on the ID. "So, how did it go?" She questions, putting Chloe on speaker so she can comb through her wet hair. "Are you a Broadway star?"

Chloe laughs. "I dunno. Maybe. I think it went well." She tells her girlfriend. "But there's still a lot of other girls they have to see so we'll see I guess." She doesn't sound like the super-confident Chloe that Aubrey is used to.

"Is everything okay?" Aubrey questions, setting her comb aside. "You don't sound like yourself."

Chloe sighs. "Yeah, everything is fine. There…there were just a lot of girls there." She admits. "I was the only non-blonde."

"That's a good thing." Aubrey assures her, putting on her sweatpants and an old Bellas tee-shirt. "You stand out. Who cares about those other girls? They're not you Chloe. I bet you were the best one there."

"I miss you." Chloe tells Aubrey after a beat of silence. "I wish you were here now. You'd make me fell better."

Aubrey smiles to herself as she gets into bed. "I miss you too. You're still coming back tomorrow?"

"Yeah, I have a late afternoon flight. What would it take to convince you to pick me up at the airport?" Chloe questions with a hint of flirtation in her tone.

Aubrey's smile grows a little wider. "Oh, I'm sure you'll think of something." She writes down Chloe's flight information and they talk for a few minutes longer before they both feel too exhausted to keep talking and hang up on the promise to see each other tomorrow. As tired as she is, it takes Aubrey a while to fall asleep, simply because she's not used to having all of this space to herself. Chloe has never been one for personal boundaries and over the past several months, she's gotten used to having the redhead encroaching on her space. She kind of misses it now.

She leaves work the following day and heads straight for the airport and she gets there way too early so she parks the car and goes into the terminal. Aubrey has always loved airports, even though she's never really been anywhere. When she was younger, her dad still traveled a lot because of his military affiliations and she used to come with her mother when it was time to pick him from yet another trip. She remembers being awestruck by the dinosaur skeleton right in the middle of all the airport shops and food kiosks, even though her mother told her that thinking about things that were already dead and gone was just a waste of time. She remembers watching the people come and go with their suitcases and headphones, some hurrying to catch flights, some lingering before security so they could get a few extra seconds with their loved ones. She used to wish that she was one of those people, going somewhere where they'd be happy. Aubrey feels that wave of nostalgia as she gets herself a coffee and a magazine and sits down in one of the free chairs right by the dinosaur skeleton. She thinks about coming here to catch a flight to start over somewhere else. But she doesn't know if her flight is to Houston or New York.

Chloe squeals when she sees her, causing several heads to turn in her direction. Aubrey smiles as she hugs Chloe. "You'd think we haven't seen each other for weeks." She remarks.

"It feels like it." Chloe assures her. "Trust me."

Aubrey does, because that's a little bit how she feels.

* * *

For the next two weeks Chloe tries not to anxiously await word from the casting directors in New York and Aubrey pushes thoughts of Houston and leaving the firm to the back of her mind. Her father hasn't said anything more about it and even the water cooler gossip has gotten a little dull recently (duller) so it's easy to sweep it under the rug. Aubrey's trying to do this new thing were she doesn't stress out about things out of her control and she feels like it's working wonders for her…gag reflex.

Chloe doesn't bring up her audition but Aubrey has noticed the redhead glancing at her phone every five minutes and sleeping with the device practically attached to her hand. They just go about things as they always have.

One afternoon, Aubrey runs into her Uncle Thomas when she goes into the break room to refill her I Heart New York coffee mug (a present from Chloe, of course). She smiles at the older man but doesn't bother to try and engage him in conversation. He's not as bad as her father, but both Posen brothers took their own military upbringing to heart and don't have much interest in small talk or sentimentality. Aubrey's three cousins, all beautiful, perfect, tall brunettes have gone on to become doctors or CEOs, which is something that her own father never fails to brag about. Aubrey's pretty sure that Marc has never bragged about her.

"I assume your father mentioned our plans to split the firm." Thomas says as he watches Aubrey fill her mug. "We're going to make an official announcement tomorrow morning."

Aubrey smiles at him. "Congratulations. This is a big opportunity."

Thomas nods. "Yes, it is. It's a chance to take the Posen name and work ethic to a whole new group of people. I'm putting together a team I trust, a team I know will make the move as painless and as successful as possible. Your father recommended I take you along."

Aubrey keeps her smile in place, even though she's thinking about Chloe and New York and her dance studio and the praise of her father and it's all a confusing jumble. "I appreciate you considering me, sir."

"I think you show a lot of promise." Thomas tells her. "I think there's a place for you in Houston."

"Thank you, sir." Aubrey tells him sincerely. She does appreciate the words of praise, even if they're not quite enough to make up for the criticism she's endured throughout her childhood.

Thomas smiles at her before he leaves the break room. Aubrey doesn't think much about their exchange until she finds herself called into her father's office later that afternoon. As she walks from her office to Marc's, she tries to figure out what she's done wrong today and honestly can't come up with anything. She's clearly going to need to start critiquing herself a little harder.

"So, Aubrey," Marc gestures for her to sit down in the chair across from his desk, "Thomas tells me that you've accepted his offer." He smiles at her. "I think that's wonderful. You're making the best choice."

Aubrey can't keep the slightly quizzical expression off her face. "Sir?" She doesn't remember agreeing to anything. She wasn't planning on doing anything officially until she could actually bring herself to broach the subject with Chloe.

"To join the firm in Houston." Marc clarifies, looking slightly annoyed. "He told me you two spoke earlier today and that you're going to make the transition to Houston."

No, she definitely doesn't remember that. "Oh, well…I…"

"Don't stammer, Aubrey." Marc interrupts, frowning. "It makes you sound uneducated." Aubrey quickly shuts her mouth. "You should make the move to Houston. I think it would give you the chance to really live up to the Posen name. I was proud when he told me you accepted."

Aubrey smiles a little. "You were?"

"Don't get me wrong. You definitely had me worried for a while there in college. With the singing and the…whatever all of that was. And your roommate, I never cared for her. And now I see why, of course; I don't often care for the type of people we represent here. But I feel like you're turning it all around now. Making something of yourself." Marc gives her a firm nod and a tight smile. "Like I said, really living up to that Posen name."

Aubrey's mouth feels dry and she's not sure if it's because of the surprise of actually having her father praise her or hearing him insult the Bellas and Chloe in one breath. "Thank you, sir." It feels like the cowardly way out. She knows she should stick up for Chloe or tell him how happy singing and the Bellas made her. But she just lets herself sit there with the faint glow of his praise still washing over her.

Marc gives her another nod. "Keep up the good work. Your mother and I would be interested in visiting you once you get settled in Houston." He doesn't say anything more, just opens a file on his desk, letting Aubrey know the conversation is over.

Aubrey gets up and leaves; she heads for her office and then takes a detour, hurrying to the bathroom and locking the door behind her. Her stomach is churning and she splashes some cold water on her face, trying to remember to breathe deeply. She can do this. She can still be the person her father wants her to be.

Chloe can tell that Aubrey is occupied but she also knows better than to try and press the blonde into divulging what's on her mind before she's ready. So she just prattles on and on about stuff that doesn't matter because she knows that Aubrey isn't listening anyway and she really can't stand the idea of them both just sitting there and not talking. Aubrey gives her these little half smiles and hums every now and then to assure Chloe that she's still hanging in with the conversation but she's not and it doesn't matter. Chloe just hopes that her relationship with Aubrey has come far enough that Aubrey will actually be willing to open up to her.

Aubrey isn't a coward. She's never been the type of back down from confrontation and she's definitely caused a few unnecessary arguments in her time just because she wasn't willing to let something go. But she does wait until Chloe's in the shower to tell her about Houston, because she can't bring herself to look Chloe in the face and try and explain the whole situation. And she does it as causally as possible too, while she's standing at the sink brushing her teeth. "My uncle is opening a branch of the firm in Houston and he and my father both think I should go too."

Chloe makes a thoughtful noise. "How did your father take it when you told him no?" She asks gently. Now she understands where Aubrey's mind has been all day.

But Aubrey doesn't answer and that definitely catches Chloe's attention. She pulls the shower curtain aside enough so that she can see Aubrey's reflection. "Bree?"

Aubrey stares at the sink bowl. "I…I think I should go."

Chloe shuts off the water and grabs a towel, wrapping it around herself before she steps onto the bathmat. She's really annoyed with Aubrey for picking this moment to bring up this conversation because she feels like she can't even take herself seriously when she's wearing nothing but a towel and still has a bit of shampoo in her hair. "You think you should go?" She repeats. "You think you should move to Texas to be a lawyer?"

Aubrey still can't bring herself to look at Chloe. "My father-"

"Fuck your father." Chloe moves so that she's standing in front of Aubrey. "Bree, listen to yourself." She takes the blonde's hands but Aubrey still won't look at her. "You want to move to a different state to do something that you hate? Why? Why would you do that to yourself?"

"It wouldn't be so bad." Aubrey argues, finally lifting her gaze. "My father wouldn't be there; I could really start to make a name for myself. And you could come too. We could go together and start over." She says this hopefully and almost manages to convince herself that it's something she wants.

"We could move to New York." Chloe counters. "I can act and you can open your dance studio and we can get a little apartment in the city and it would be amazing." She laces their fingers together.

Aubrey says. "That sounds like a pipe dream." She mumbles.

Chloe arches an eyebrow. "What about me being on Broadway? The audition. Is that a pipe dream?"

"No!" Aubrey protests quickly and with obvious sincerity. "No, of course not."

"So why is it okay for me to want to be an actress but you wanting to have your own dance studio is a pipe dream?" Chloe questions, looking at Aubrey intently.

"Because…you're better than I am." Aubrey says quietly. "Your audition…it was amazing. I'm not like that."

Chloe shakes her head. "You have got to stop doing this to yourself Bree." She rests her hand against Aubrey's cheek. "You _are_ amazing. Do you think I would be with someone who wasn't?" She kisses her lightly. "Don't do this to yourself."

Aubrey forces a little smile onto her face. "Nothing is set in stone yet. It was just an idea." She mumbles, even though there are definitely people who think that it _is_ set in stone. And they're the people who really matter. Not that Chloe doesn't matter, of course she's not saying that. Ugh. Aubrey hates complicated.

The following morning at the office, Marc officially makes the announcement that the firm is splitting and Thomas is taking a few associates and moving to Houston with his blessing. Aubrey fake smiles and fakes enthusiasm when Marc says her name as one of the people who will be making the transition and for the first time he looks at her like he's not completely ashamed to call her his daughter and Aubrey thinks that maybe that'll make everything worth it.

During her drive home, Aubrey tries to gear herself up for her conversation with Chloe. She mentally runs through the speech in her head over and over again, touching on the highlights. _I'm going to Houston. It _is_ what I want to do_. _I want you to come with me. Please_.

Chloe is already at the apartment when Aubrey unlocks the door, which is not an unusual occurrence, seeing as she's had a key for some time now. What is unusual is the fact that Chloe is waiting with two glasses and a bottle of champagne, which she pops as soon as Aubrey walks in the door. The blonde just gives her a confused look.

"I felt like you were never going to get home!" Chloe is practically vibrating with energy, even more so than usual. "I got the part! I actually got the part! I found out this morning but I wanted to tell you in person. Can you believe it? They want me to be on Broadway! I'm going to be on Broadway!"

For a minute Aubrey doesn't quite realize what Chloe's telling her. But then it slowly dawns on her: Chloe is going to be Marilyn Monroe. On Broadway. In New York. Hundreds of miles away from Houston. Aubrey feels like a horrible person because she can't jump around with Chloe and be excited and put her arms around the redhead and tell her how proud she is and how she always knew she could do it, even though those are all the things that she wants to do. She can't do anything but just stand there.

Chloe starts to deflate slightly, her smile fading. "Aubrey?" She definitely didn't expect to be the only one expressing any sort of joy in this situation.

There's still a voice in the back of Aubrey's mind telling her to hug Chloe and drink champagne and kiss her girlfriend until they're both out of breath and just be happy like a good friend should. But what comes out is, "What about Houston?"

Chloe looks completely taken aback. "Houston?" She repeats, setting aside the champagne glasses. "What _about_ Houston?"

"I…I'm going to Houston with the firm." Aubrey says, trying to sound like this is the thing she's always been waiting for. "I thought we could move together."

"_Why_?" Chloe questions, going to stand in front of Aubrey. "Why would you do that? Why would you keep doing this to yourself? This is your chance, Bree. This is _our_ chance. I've been waiting for this for my entire life. We can move to New York, together. We can make a life there, together. You can start your dance studio or sing or fucking be a waitress for all I care, as long as you're happy. We can be happy there. And you're talking about going to Houston?"

Aubrey's brow knits as she looks at Chloe, feeling desperate to explain everything. But she knows that she can't, because everything Chloe said is true. "You don't understand. My father he…he's proud of me Chloe. For the first time in my life, he's actually proud of me. Do you have any idea how that makes me feel?"

Chloe just gives her a look that manages to be both hurt and annoyed at the same time. "_I'm_ proud of you." She puts her hand on her chest. "I've _always_ been proud of you. I think that you're perfect just the way you are. Why do you care what he thinks about you? You really want to spend your entire life trying to make him proud of you?"

Aubrey feels tears prick her eyes and she shakes her a little a little. "You don't understand." She says again.

Chloe shakes her head, turning away from her. "That's where you're wrong. I think I am starting to understand." She mutters as she picks up her purse from its spot on the counter. "For someone who has been made to feel her whole life like she isn't good enough, you're pretty good at making other people feel that way too."

Aubrey gapes at her. "No, Chloe, that's not-"

"No, I get it, Bree. I get it. You need to do what's going to make you happy and so do I. I thought that might be the same thing, but I should have known better. As long as your dad is happy, everyone else can go to hell right?" She pushes past Aubrey and toward the door. "So much for not letting him come between us, right?" Chloe gives her a sad sort of smile before yanking open the door and disappearing into the hallway, slamming it shut behind her.

Aubrey had thought that the worst moment in her life was when her father found out about the fiasco at Lincoln Center her junior year. He'd told her that he was ashamed to have her as a daughter and he prayed that no one realized that the same Aubrey Posen who threw up across the first three rows during a performance was related to him. He'd cut off contact with her for nearly two years. He only agreed to speak to her again when she told him she would go to law school.

But how she feels right now, watching Chloe walk out without so much as a backwards glance…this feels much, much worse than that.

* * *

The following morning, Aubrey goes to Chloe's apartment in hopes of explaining herself better than she did before and making Chloe realize that she does need her in her life and they can make this work. Find a way to compromise.

Spencer gives her a death glare when she opens the door. "What?"

Aubrey clears her throat and gives the girl a hopefully winning smile. "I'm here to talk to Chloe."

"Good luck." Spencer rolls her eyes. "She left this morning."

"What?" Aubrey's eyes go wide. "She _left_?"

Spencer gives a _boy you are a dumb blonde_ look. "Yeah, bitch just left. Didn't give me any kind of warning so I could find another roommate or anything. She came home yesterday morning, packed all her shit and this morning she left. I was going to kick her out anyway but-"

Aubrey just pushes past Spencer and ignores the other girl's protests as she walks down the hall and toward Chloe's room. The big pieces of furniture are still in place but the bed is without sheets, the bookshelf is empty and Chloe's desk is devoid of any personal touches. Her pictures are gone, there are no clothes in the closet and no strawberry scented shampoo in the bathroom.

"Told you." Spencer says from the doorway. "Said something about going to New York." She makes a face. "Sounds like a load of shit to me."

Aubrey glares at her. "Luckily no one asked your opinion." She remarks. "I sincerely hope we never have to displeasure of meeting again." She leaves the apartment without a backwards glance.

She figures out through various social media sites that Chloe's presence was requested immediately in New York so she could start rehearsals and take over for the old Marilyn in two weeks time. Aubrey assumes that Chloe would have told her all this herself if the evening had gone a little differently. She picks up the phone but her fingers refuse to dial Chloe's number. There's nothing to say anyway, because she's going to Houston and Chloe is in New York. But it still hurts so badly she can't even breathe.

Over the weekend, Aubrey stays in her pajamas and sleeps as much as she can just so she can avoid thinking about Chloe. But, of course, her subconscious just concocts all sorts of horrible nightmares and she always wakes up fretful and in tears.

Monday, Aubrey feels like a zombie. Marc takes one look at her and his face fixes into an expression of disgust. "Aubrey, you need to take more pride in your personal appearance." Aubrey says nothing because she's not sure what it is that his bothering her father. She looks exactly like she always does: professional and polished with her face painted on. The way she feels inside must be coming through somehow. "You should invest in some more professional attire. And you might want to think about coloring your hair to ensure that people start taking you seriously." Marc rattles through all of these things while scrolling through the calendar on his phone, not even bothering to look at her.

Aubrey feels that familiar pit in her stomach. "Yes, sir."

She goes to take refuge in her office but she can't concentrate on the paperwork in front of her. Aubrey picks up the framed picture that she has on her desk that was taken of her and Chloe this past New Years. Chloe is kissing her cheek and Aubrey remembers how happy she was that night, how happy she always was with Chloe. Chloe's words from the other night echo loud and clear in her head: _you're perfect just the way you are_. Well, Chloe might not be exactly right about that. Because clearly she's an idiot.

Aubrey stands up, taking a look around her office. There's nothing here that's her, nothing that suggests that Aubrey Posen inhabits this place. Except for the picture, which she slips into her purse before she slings it over her shoulder. She makes a beeline for her father's office, knocking on the closed door.

Marc looks annoyed when he sees it's just his daughter. "Can this wait, Aubrey? I'm preparing for a meeting."

"No, sir, it can't. It's important." Aubrey tells him, shutting the door behind her. Marc's expression doesn't change, but he doesn't chase her out either. "I'm not going to Houston."

Marc looks genuinely surprised for the first time that Aubrey can remember. Normally he's always perfectly composed and prepared for whatever is going to happen next. Not this time. "What do you mean? Your uncle is counting on you. You'd rather stay here?" He asks, incredulous.

"No." Aubrey tells him. "I'm quitting. I'm going to New York."

"New York?" Marc hisses, getting to his feet. "What in the hell, Aubrey? What foolishness are you talking about?" He comes to stand in front of her and he looks just about as mad as she's ever seen him. "Explain yourself."

Aubrey takes a deep breath. "I don't want to be a lawyer. I hate it. It was what you wanted me to do, but not what I wanted to do. I want to dance and open my own studio and teach other people to love to dance. I'm moving to New York with Chloe."

"You can't make a career teaching dance. What makes you think you'd even be qualified?" Marc asks dismissively.

"Because I'm a fantastic dancer." Aubrey tells him, refusing to avoid his gaze. "You would know that if you ever came to see me dance."

Marc might as well not have even heard her. "Chloe?" He continues. "That girl from college? Your old roommate? I knew she was a bad influence on you. That girl is going nowhere fast in her life. She's going to end up dead broke and worthless by the time she's thirty."

Aubrey narrows her eyes. "You don't even know her, sir. She might not be a lawyer or a doctor or a CEO but at least she's happy. And I'd rather be like her than like you." Marc's eyes grow wider. "And Chloe is my girlfriend. I love her. I should be with her now but I-"

"Stop this now." Marc snaps, reaching out a grabbing her arm. Aubrey flinches but doesn't pull away. "Just stop this. Is this some sort of delayed teenage rebellion bullshit? I hope you're getting it out of your system now because not going to Houston is not an option. I will not have you embarrass me again, Aubrey. I won't allow it."

Aubrey pulls her arm out of his grasp. "I won't allow you to dictate my life anymore." She takes a step back, toward the office door.

"Aubrey, if you step out of this office, that's it." Marc tells her, his voice low and deathly serious. She knows this tone; the last time she heard it was when he told her to pack her bags after Lincoln Center. "I don't want to speak to you again. Don't come to me when your find yourself unemployed and without a penny to your name."

Swallowing, Aubrey looks at her father. "Yes, sir." She turns and leaves the office, curling her fingers into fists so no one can see how badly her hands are shaking. She tries to do her deep breathing exercises, praying that she doesn't have to suffer the indignity of making herself sick after she finally stood her ground with her father. She's surprised to find that she doesn't feel sick at all. In fact, she feels a little bit like smiling.

Aubrey goes home and thinking about having to pack up her apartment makes her want to cry in a way that her confrontation with her father definitely didn't. She ends up going to a local storage place and buying a unit and a ton of boxes, deciding if she can't fit it in one of two suitcases then it can be packed up and retrieved at a later date. After all, flights to New York don't just run one-way; she can come back for anything she desperately needs.

The only time Aubrey takes a break from packing is to order take-out and browse New York City real estate listings, looking for a space big enough to turn into a dance studio. She calls a realtor and makes an appointment for the following day and then she buys her plane ticket. Because it's what she wants to do and she couldn't be happier.

* * *

Chloe has been in New York for five days but it's hardly the fairytale that she imagined it would be. First of all, she's living on the floor of the apartment that belongs to one of the dancers in the show with five of the other dancers. And for the record, there's only one bathroom. And the bedroom, living room and kitchen are all pretty much the same space. She wants to get her own place but she hasn't had time because since she touched down in the city she's pretty much be in rehearsals, which are run by a woman who puts Aubrey to shame. Not that Chloe thinks about Aubrey, like at all. Okay, so she thinks about Aubrey all the time. She hates that they're not here in the city together, that she's not able to share her day with Aubrey or come home exhausted from rehearsals and curl up in Aubrey's lap and drift off to sleep while the blonde plays with her hair.

Saturday, in the hours before she had to get on her flight, Chloe thought about going to Aubrey's and trying again. But she stopped herself, because it was obvious where Aubrey stood and she wasn't going to let herself be talked out of it. Apparently only her father could talk her into doing things she might otherwise have no interest in. Instead, Chloe took the majority of her stuff to her mother's, enlisting her younger brothers into packing it all away in the garage while she and her mom talked. "Where's Aubrey? Is she going with you?" Her mother, Jennifer, had asked after she was finally done expressing how proud she was of her second oldest child. Chloe's face had been answer enough. "Oh, Chloe, what happened? How are you?"

"It sucks." Chloe had been unable to blink away the tears that had been threatening to fall since she'd left Aubrey's the night before. She'd kept herself busy enough to avoid thinking about how they'd left things, but now there was nothing to do but think about it. "Sucks."

Chloe still pretty much feels that way. Of course she's happy to be on Broadway. Like words do not describe how happy she feels. This really is a dream come true, even if her feet hurt all the time and she's so exhausted by the time she gets home from rehearsals that she just falls asleep on her spot on the floor and could care less about what goes on around her. Which is good, seeing as she has five other roommates to deal with. But she's glad she's here and she knows she'll be even more glad when she actually does her first show as Marilyn. It's just an adjustment period.

The morning of her fifth day in the city, Chloe wakes up late and has to practically dress herself while running down the streets to the theatre. Not that anyone bats an eyelash as she runs past in a tank top and leggings, putting on her flats and putting up her hair at the same time. She manages to get there on time (just barely) but it's still not an auspicious start to her day.

The director, Lauryn Kirk, has them running through the show's opening number "Let Me Be Your Star" and Chloe feels like she's going to be singing the lines in her sleep. She dances the steps, she sings her heart out and she imagines herself performing in front of hundreds of people, selling herself, selling Marilyn, making her dreams come true. But Chloe figures that anyone would lose their enthusiasm after doing something twenty five times.

Finally Lauryn looks at her watch and lets out an audible sigh. "Okay, let's take a ten. Get some water, have a protein bar. We'll start on 'Mambo' when we get back."

Chloe goes into the lobby just to get a little bit of air and separate herself from the stage lights and the rest of the dancers and actors. She grabs a bottle of water from the vending machine and gingerly touches her head. In order to make the platinum blonde wig look as real as possible, the makeup artist has to pin her curls past the point of what Chloe feels is acceptable and it makes her scalp tingle. No one can fault her if takes it off for a second.

As soon as Chloe gently pulls off her wig, someone lets out a wolf-whistle behind her. "Thank God. I always did have a thing for redheads."

Chloe can hardly believe her eyes. She must be dreaming. Maybe she passed out due to exhaustion or the glow of the stage lights are making her see things because there's no possible way that Aubrey is standing in front of her now. It just doesn't make sense. What would Aubrey be doing here, in the lobby of the Foxwoods Theatre?

Aubrey smiles at her, a tentative gesture that makes it easy for Chloe to see her nervousness. "Hey." She says softly.

"Hi." Chloe still feels like she's not really awake. That this is all a dream and it feels so real now but it's going to be over all too soon. She takes a step toward Aubrey and then another when the scene stays the same. No crazy subconscious shifting here. "What are you doing here? How did you find me?"

Aubrey smile gets a little bigger. "It wasn't hard to figure out where rehearsals were. They have this thing called the Internet now, it makes things so much easier."

Chloe can't help but smile a little as well. "What are you doing here Bree?"

"What do you think? I came here for you, silly." Aubrey reaches out and takes her hand, twining their fingers together. "You were amazing. Amazing. I've seriously never seen anyone like you."

"Suck-up." Chloe teases but she's still smiling and she's not sure she can stop. "I didn't know you were watching. I didn't even know you were here."

Aubrey shrugs. "I wanted to surprise you."

Chloe is about to assure that she is indeed surprised when one of the dancers pokes her head out into the lobby. "Chloe, we need you." She takes in the scene before her. "Sorry to interrupt. But Lauryn's…you know…" She mimes cracking a whip and makes a face.

Chloe nods and assures the girl she'll be right there. "Want to stick around? We can get food after?" She looks at Aubrey.

"Where else would I go?" Aubrey questions. She takes the wig from Chloe and slides it gently back over her curls. "Go get 'em."

Chloe finds that rehearsals pass by much quicker than usual and she doesn't even care when Lauryn snaps at her for tripping over her own feet during "20th Century Fox Mambo." By the time rehearsals are finally over, night has fallen across the city, not that you'd ever be able to tell. The lights of the stores and hotels and homes and other buildings eliminate the need for any sort of natural light and the streets are still packed with locals and tourists and Chloe feels the energy of the place for the first time. Normally all she can think about is getting home and going to bed. Now she's just thinking about Aubrey and what this means for them.

Aubrey is waiting in the lobby when Chloe comes out, dressed again in her leggings and tank top, her hair mercifully free of constraints. "Are you hungry?" Aubrey questions as they step out onto the sidewalk.

"Starving." Chloe assures her. "You have no idea."

Aubrey suggests sushi, but Chloe vetoes her with a laugh and they go to a deli around the corner. Chloe hasn't had much time to explore the city and the restaurants but she has eaten at this place several times and everything on the menu is to die for. They get their food and sit at a little table in the back of the restaurant and it's more alone than they'd get at Chloe's place, so she doesn't suggest leaving.

"So what are you doing here?" Chloe questions around bites of her sandwich. Normally she'd want to give her entire attention to this sort of conversation but she wasn't kidding when she said she was starving. She could probably eat ten of these sandwiches. "What about Houston and your dad?"

Aubrey sighs and picks at the crust of her sandwich. "I…I'm an idiot. I messed up. I never should have…I don't know why I thought going to Houston was a good idea. I should have left with you and never looked back." She puts her hands in her lap to avoid destroying her sandwich any further. "I…I told my dad I was coming here. I told him that you were my girlfriend and I wanted to be here with you."

Chloe's eyes go wide. "How'd he take it?" She can only imagine.

Aubrey makes a face. "He never wants to see me again. Though, to be fair, I'm not sure what part was the most upsetting for him. He told me he was never going to speak to me again if I didn't go to Houston." She shrugs, going back to toying with her food.

Chloe reaches across the table and puts her hand over Aubrey's. "Bree…"

"It's fine." Aubrey assures her. "I should have stood up to him a long time ago. You were right, I was making myself miserable. I never wanted any of those things but I let him make me think I did. If he doesn't want to see me again, that's fine. I want to do something for me now."

Chloe can't stop a grin from spreading across her face. "Bree, you're amazing." She gives her hand a squeeze. "Seriously." Aubrey blushes but she has a little smile on her face. "So what is it that Aubrey Posen wants to do?"

"Well, for starters I want to have dinner with my amazing girlfriend." Aubrey answers, even though it sounds incredibly cheesy to her. But she doesn't care, she could do with a little cheesy right now.

Chloe laughs softly and smiles at her. "Great idea."

Aubrey hesitates for a moment before confessing, "I thought…I thought that maybe you wouldn't want anything to do with me. I wouldn't have blamed you, I mean I screwed up pretty badly. I feel like I'm always telling you how sorry I am, all I ever do is make mistakes and I wouldn't blame you if you were sick of dealing with all of this and-"

"Whoa, Bree, take a breath." Chloe says with a little smile. "I could never be sick of you. I don't care if you make mistakes. You don't have to always be this perfect person. I just want you to be happy."

"I am." Aubrey assures her. "Now."

They finish eating and then walk back to Aubrey's hotel room hand-in-hand; Chloe explained her living situation over dinner and they reached the unanimous decision that maybe they should take advantage of the room Aubrey had temporarily booked. "I have to be honest with you about something." Aubrey says they reach the hotel lobby. "I…I actually flew into New York yesterday." Chloe gives a quizzical and slightly hurt look. Aubrey had assumed that Chloe might not be overjoyed to hear that she'd been in the city for almost twenty-four hours before tracking her down. "I had a meeting with a realtor yesterday. I'm looking for a space to turn into my own studio."

Chloe squeals and claps her hands together. "Okay, you're forgiven." She throws her arms around Aubrey's shoulders and squeezes her tight. Several of the other guests in the lobby glance their way but it hardly matters. "I can't believe it! You're going to have your own studio, I'm going to be on Broadway. We're going to be freaking amazing."

They take the elevator up to Aubrey's room and Chloe spends the next ten minutes being way too excited about the big bathroom and the fact that there's an actual bed and carpet on the floor and there aren't six other people and _their_ friends hanging around. "I love you." Aubrey smiles, shaking her head a little bit. "You're so easy to please."

"You haven't seen where I'm living." Chloe launches herself onto the bed. It's just as bouncy as she expected. "I'm sleeping on a floor, Bree, a _floor_. Under a table."

"We'll have to find our own place." Aubrey tells her. "And I promise you won't have to sleep on the floor."

Chloe smiles at her. "Sounds like heaven." She pats the mattress beside her and Aubrey comes to lay down next to her. She curls herself around Aubrey like a cat and Aubrey closes her eyes and she knows that this is where she should be. "I was lonely without you." Chloe tells her, laying her head against Aubrey's shoulder.

"Me too." Aubrey says softly. "I didn't know what to do." But she guesses, in a way, that she did. She is here, after all.

Chloe lifts her head and kisses her softly. "Well, from now on we can figure it all out together."

Aubrey likes the sound of that.

* * *

Even though Chloe is doing the matinee shows, which are in the middle of the day, Aubrey still insists on calling it her "opening night" and gets up early to make pancakes and scrambled eggs for breakfast before Chloe has to be at the theatre. Chloe is so nervous she can hardly eat more than a few bites and she can't keep from humming the songs under her breath as she plays with the food on her plate.

"You'll be fine." Aubrey assures her, reaching across the table and giving her hand a squeeze. The small kitchen table they have in their small kitchen area doesn't match any of the other furniture they have in their small apartment but it's better than eating while sitting cross-legged on the floor. They've only been moved in for a few days but having furniture is an important step in making the place feel like an actual home.

"What if I forget the songs?" Chloe questions. "Or the lines? What if I can't remember the steps?"

"Chloe." Aubrey says firmly. "You know those songs backwards and forwards. Trust me. You sing them all the time. You know the lines and you know the steps. You're going to be amazing."

Chloe gives Aubrey a kiss and rests her forehead against the blonde's. "Thanks. I hope you're right."

"I am." Aubrey says with finality. "Now go get ready or you're going to be late." Chloe smiles and salutes her before getting up and heading into the bedroom.

The show isn't until two, so Aubrey has plenty of time to kill before she wanders down to Foxwoods Theatre to pick up her ticket. Chloe's family couldn't make it on such short notice, so Aubrey is going to be the only one there solely to see Chloe (aside from the critics of course) and it's not like she's nervous or anything. Because she isn't. Aubrey knows that Chloe is going to knock it out of the park. She's just a little anxious on Chloe's behalf; sympathy pains or whatever.

Aubrey buys a bouquet of flowers for Chloe before going to will-call and picking up her ticket. As she takes her seat, she looks at the _Playbill_, grinning when she sees Chloe's name on the cast list.

The elderly woman seated beside her notices Aubrey's expression and smiles. "You must be a fan." She remarks, gesturing to the _Playbill_.

"Actually my girlfriend is in the show." Aubrey confesses. "This is her debut." She points to Chloe's name. So what if she's bragging a little bit. That's her right.

The woman arches her eyebrows, looking impressed. "She's playing Marilyn? She must be really something."

Aubrey nods with a smile. "She is."

Predictably, Chloe brings down the house. Aubrey has no idea why Chloe was ever worried. She's seen several rehearsals since she's been in New York but Aubrey feels like the cast has never been as amazing as they are today. She can't even bring herself to leave her seat during intermission and by the end of the show, when Chloe sings the final number, there are tears in Aubrey's eyes. She can't help but notice that she's not the only one in the audience with damp eyes.

"I've seen this show several times." The woman seated next to Aubrey says after the cast has taken their final bows. "And I don't think I've seen a Marilyn that good since Karen Cartwright."

One of the stage hands recognizes Aubrey and lets her backstage and she manages to push her way through the crowd of people excitedly talking about the show and lavishing Chloe with compliments. Chloe pulls Aubrey into a hug, bouncing up and down like an excited toddler. "That was so crazy." She says. "That was amazing."

"You were amazing." Aubrey corrects, giving Chloe her flowers. "Not a dry eye in the house."

Chloe changes and takes off her makeup and her wig and she and Aubrey go out for an early dinner. "I never actually thought I'd get to do this." Chloe confesses after they give their orders to the waiter. "I've wanted to be here since I was a kid but…I never thought I'd actually make it."

"I honestly think you could do anything." Aubrey says frankly. "I have a feeling that this is only the beginning."

Chloe feels her cheeks redden slightly. "You have to say stuff like that."

Aubrey smirks, arching an eyebrow. "True, very true." Chloe swats at her from across the table. "You don't need me to tell you that you're awesome." She points out. "I think the standing ovation you just got pretty much handled that."

Chloe can't keep from grinning broadly. "That was pretty amazing."

And the reviews from Broadway's harsher critics are pretty amazing if Chloe does say so herself. She almost can't believe it when she scans the newspapers and the blogs and finds that most people have nothing but positive things to say about her. Aubrey puts a few of the reviews on their refrigerator and resists the urge, but just barely, to send a few of them to her father. It wouldn't make him think differently about Chloe and would probably just make him think that she's still desperate for his approval. Which is definitely not the case. Who needs him when she has someone who doesn't make her work to be loved? And after twenty-five years of having to work for it, it's nice to feel good enough.

_**TBC **_


	3. Cut, Print, Moving On

**"What's Next? Well I Can't Even Give You a Hint. But Boys, That's a Wrap. So Cut, Print...Moving On"  
**

"Mom, I don't want to do chess club. I told you." Katharine Wilson knows even as she protests that her words are going to fall on deaf ears. Her mother has never been receptive to any thoughts other than her own, but at eight-years-old, Katharine is still young enough to believe that if she argues enough she'll eventually be heard. "Chess is for nerds."

Her mother, Olivia, doesn't even look up from her phone. This is a common scene on New York City streets and Katharine has no idea how people aren't running into each other all of the time. "Chess is for intelligent people." Her mother corrects, typing out an e-mail. "It's one day a week, Katharine. I'm sure you'll survive."

Katharine groans and kicks a rock with the toe of her ballet flat. She doesn't bother to argue anymore. There's no use in pointing out that chess might only be one day a week but Monday she has violin lessons, Tuesday is academic decathlon and Friday is etiquette class. Chess will now be Wednesdays. Which now makes Thursdays Katharine's official favorite day. Not that she didn't already think that. Thursday she gets to go to ballet class and she loves ballet class.

Her mom nearly walks past the studio and Katharine reaches for her hand. "We're here." She points to the glass doors. Olivia stops and turns around. "Are you going to remember to pick me up?" Hey, you can't blame her for asking. It's happened once (or three times) before.

"Of course. It's in my calendar." Olivia pats Katharine's head. "Have a good class sweetie."

Katharine yanks open the doors of the studio and heads to the locker room to put up her backpack and jacket and to change out of her school uniform and into her leotard. She always wears her dance shoes to school on Thursdays, even though its technically against the rules.

As usual, Katharine is the first to arrive for class. She likes to go right after school, even though her mother doesn't seen the sense in her being there a whole thirty minutes early. But Katharine likes to have the extra time with her teacher, Miss Aubrey, who never seems annoyed that she has a pupil who shows up early and begs to stay late.

Miss Aubrey smiles at Katharine when she walks into the studio. "Looks like someone is ready to dance."

"Yes, Miss Aubrey." Katharine nods enthusiastically. "Can we work on the plié?"

They work on doing some stretches and spend some time on Katharine's pliés until the other students start to arrive. Katharine keeps working even though Miss Aubrey's attention isn't solely focused on her anymore and she can't help but smile to herself every time her teacher compliments her form. Dance class is only an hour, but it's still plenty of time to forget about stupid chess club and all her homework and all the other things her mother wants her to do. Dance class is something that she wants to do and Katharine wishes it never ended.

But unfortunately the hour comes to an end and the other moms and dads and nannies show up to collect their kids and Miss Aubrey smiles at everyone and tells them all to have a great week and she'll see them next time. Katharine drags her feet as she goes to the locker room to collect her clothes, putting on her coat as she walks into the lobby. Not surprisingly, her mother is nowhere to be found. She's ten minutes late and Katharine's pretty sure she won't realize her mistake for about twenty more minutes.

Miss Aubrey walks into the lobby, taking a sip from her water bottle. She gives Katharine a sad sort of knowing smile. "Mom running late?"

"Yeah. She forgets things easily." Katharine says, sitting down on the bench in the lobby. "I'm sure she'll be here soon."

Katharine smiles when Miss Aubrey sits down beside her. "Mind if I wait here?"

"No." Katharine swings her legs. "Can we dance some more? I love dancing." She gives Miss Aubrey a hopeful smile. "I wish I could come to your class everyday."

"A few of the other kids do." Miss Aubrey tells her. "You're a very good dancer, Katharine; you love it more than the other kids. It would be nice to see you in the studio more often."

Katharine shrugs. "I can't. I have all kinds of other stuff to do. Like chess club." She makes a face.

"I did chess when I was your age." Miss Aubrey tells her. "I didn't like it either."

"Did you tell your parents?" Katharine questions. She finds it hard to believe that someone like Miss Aubrey ever did something as boring as chess club.

"Yeah, but I had to do it anyway." Miss Aubrey answers. "I had to do a lot of things I didn't like, but eventually I grew up and I could do the things I wanted."

"Like dance?" Miss Aubrey nods. "That's what I like too. It makes me the happiest. I want to be a ballerina."

Miss Aubrey smiles what Katharine can tell is a true smile. She's been around her mom enough to know when adults smile without paying attention. "Well, we should get in a little more practice then. Since we're waiting for your mom."

Katharine strips off her coat and hurries into the studio. She tries to copy Miss Aubrey's perfect poses as they stretch at the bar and she concentrates so hard that she doesn't realize that someone else has come in until she hears another voice. "Thought I might find you in here. Burning that midnight oil."

Katharine has met Miss Aubrey's friend Miss Chloe a few times before. She likes to visit Miss Aubrey in the studio and she always has nice things to say about the dancers, even the ones that aren't that good like Lena Flowers, who thinks she's the best at everything because her dad works with the governor. Katharine can't help but get a little shy around Miss Chloe because she's seen Miss Chloe on Broadway. Over the summer, her nanny took her to a few shows to keep her busy and even though Katharine really didn't understand who this Marilyn Monroe person was, she thought Miss Chloe was the best singer she'd ever heard. Katharine's pretty sure that if she doesn't become a ballet dancer, than she wants to be on Broadway just like Miss Chloe.

"Just spending time with my favorite student." Miss Aubrey smiles at Katharine. "Don't tell the others." She winks at her.

"I won't!" Katharine assures her quickly, feeling her heart jump around in her chest. "Hi Miss Chloe." She smiles and waves before going back to her pliés, determined to continue to be the best.

Miss Chloe smiles at her. "Hi Katharine. You still going to come visit me at the theatre? I can still show you around if you want."

"Yes, I will." Katharine says determinedly. "Maybe after chess club."

Miss Chloe makes a face that perfectly sums up how Katharine feels about the whole thing. "That sounds…fun." She stands next to Miss Aubrey and Miss Aubrey looks so happy that it makes Katharine happy too. Her mom never seems happy; she's too busy.

Katharine feels a sting of disappointment when her mother comes walking into the studio. "I'm sorry I'm late." She's apologizing to Miss Aubrey, not even bothering to look at Katharine. "My meeting ran late. Do you have your things?" She looks over at Katharine now, who nods dejectedly and shuffles off to pick up her bag and coat.

"It was no problem." Miss Aubrey assures Olivia. "Katharine has so much potential as a dancer, it's nice to be able to spend some one on one time with her."

"Hmm." Olivia pulls out her phone and checks the most recent message from her boss. "It is her favorite hobby. If only she was interested in something worthwhile." She looks up from her phone. "Let's go Katharine. Your French tutor is coming by the house tonight."

Katharine wrinkles her nose and sighs. "Bye Miss Aubrey." She gives her teacher a wave as she follows her mother out of the studio. "Bye Miss Chloe."

"See you next week." Miss Aubrey smiles at her and winks again and Katharine gets that happy feeling in her chest again. She wants to be just like Miss Aubrey when she grows up.

**End **


End file.
